Mount manufacturing machine



Oct. 1, 1957 s. J. GARTNER MOUNT MANUFACTURING MACHINE 3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed Aug. 31. 1954 Oct. 1, 1957 Filed Aug. 31. 1954 S. J. GARTNER MOUNT MANUFACTURING MACHINE .3 Sheets-Sheet 2 "IIIIII/I/IIIIAYI/l/ INVENTOR STANLEY J. GARTNER ATTORNEY Oct. 1, 1957 s. J- GARTNER 2,807,366

MOUNT MANUFACTURING MACHINE Filed Aug. 31, 1954 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 INVENTOR STANLEY J. GARTNER ATTORNEY itcd States Patent Qffi 2,807,866 Patented Oct. 1, 1957 .MOUNT MANUFACTURING MACHINE Stanley J. Gartner, Emporium, Pa., assignor to Sylvania Electric Products Inc., a corporation of Massachusetts Application August'31, 1954, Serial No. 453,233 12 Claims. ci. 2'9--2s.19

This invention relates to automatic machinery for producing radio tube mounts. These mounts subsequently are placed in an envelope which is sealed to the stem portion of the mount and exhausted to become a finished electron device. Such a machine is described in my previous application Ser. No. 790,570, filed December 9, 1947.

' In particular this invention relates to an improvement in that portion of the machine which applies the anode to a mount assembly and which applies to the top of the mount a pierced insulating wafer, here shown as made of mica, the cathode and side rods of the various elements of the mount and the anode being properly positioned by the machine so that the pierced mica may be slipped over the ends of the side rods, cathode, and tabs on the anode.

One of the objects of the invention is to provide for a novel means for transferring a top insulating wafer from a conveyor onto aligned electrode elements.

A further object of the invention is to provide for a novel form of aligning means for the various electrode elements of a tube mount to enable the top wafer to be properly engaged with the elements.

Other objects will be apparent after reading the following specification and claims in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

Fig. 1 is a plan View of a fragmental portion 'of the machine showing the station whereat topsinsulating wafers are placed on assembled electrodes held in a base block transported by an endless conveyor.

Fig. 2 is a fragmental view, partly in section showing the base block, electrodes mounted therein, and the top insulating wafer.

Fig. 3 is a plan view of the insulating wafer in its holder, ready to be applied to the tops of the electrodes to position parts at one end of the electrode assembly.

Fig. 4 is a side elevational view with parts broken away to show details of the wafer transfer mechanism.

Fig. 5 is a side elevational view with parts in section, of mechanism associated with the transfer mechanism for controlling the operation of jaws for positioning the free end of the cathode preparatory to application of the top wafer on the mount assembly.

Fig. 6 is a side elevational view, with parts broken away, of mechanism for positioning the free ends of all of the electrodes preparatory to application of the top wafer on the mount assembly.

Figs. 7 to 11 show, progressively, the operation of the electrode positioning jaws, the electrodes other than the cathode being first preliminarily adjusted to position by one pair of jaws and the cathode then adjusted by a forked element with 'tines having inclined walls as the other electrodes are adjusted to final position. The grid wires are not shown in figures subsequent to Fig. 7 for the sake of clarity.

Fig. 12 is a side elevation looking in the direction of the arrows 12--12 in Fig. 11.

Referring to the drawings in greater detail, 'at :1, see

:Fig. 1, there is indicated a mount assembly conveyor movable in an endless path, as described in application Ser. No. 790,570 previously referred to. As in the prior application, the conveyor carries a number of horizontal carrier plates, of which one is shown at 3, each carrier plate supporting a vertical block 5, inclined to the run of the conveyor, on which block is a ring 7 for carrying the lower insulating wafer 8. The block also has provision for mounting the lower ends 9 of the electrodes of a tube mount. The tube mount is here shown as comprised of a tabbed central cathode 10, a first grid 11, a second grid 12, a third grid 13, and an anode 14.

The conveyor carries the block 5 with its assembled but not aligned tube elements in front of the element aligner and top wafer applicator station illustrated in the various figures. At this station there is an endless wafer conveyor 15 trained about pairs of vertical discs 16 having their shafts mounted in vertical bearing walls 17 and 18. These discs have notches 19 for engagement with pairs of rollers 20 to ensure driving of the conveyor. The rollers of the upper reach of the conveyor ride on tracks 21. The conveyor is made up of a series of articulated plates 22 as can be clearly seen, with an axle of each of the pairs of rollers 20 serving as the pintles for the adjacent plates. Each plate has a recessed portion 23 into which may be fed, by means not shown, top wafers 24 to be applied to the mount brought to position by the conveyor 1 before the conveyor 15. The micas are releasably held in position in the recessed portions by spring pressed feet 26 pressing against corners of the micas. The conveyor 15 is intermittently driven by a gear 25 fast on one of the disc carrying shafts, said gear meshing with an idler gear 27 in turn meshing with a gear 29 fast on a shaft 31. The shaft 31 is intermittently driven through the Geneva disc 33. The disc is driven by a pin on an arm 35 fast on the station main shaft 37 and the shaft 37 is driven via a cam shaft 38 from the main drive shaft 39 of the entire machine.

Cooperative with the conveyor, see Fig. 4, is a mica retainer device consisting of an arm 41 having rollers 43 functioning to hold the micas in place as a mica transfer device to be described engages the mica. For this purpose a spring 45 operates on a bell crank 47 which in turn, through link 49, crank arm 51'fixed on shaft 53, and arm 41 also fixed on the shaft, operates on the rollers 43 to press the same against the mica. To retract the rollers just after engagement of said transfer device with the mica there is provided a cam 55 fixed on the shaft 37.

To eifect the transfer of the mica onto the electrode assembly held by block 5, there is provided .a pick up fork 57 on the transfer device engageable in slots 59, see Fig. 3, in a mica 24 .and movable toward the block 5. One of the tines of the fork may be pivoted and resiliently pressed toward the other, the pivot being shown at 58. For the purpose of effecting the rectilinear movement of the fork, see Fig. 4, the shaft 37 has fixed thereon a cam 61 operative on a roller 63 on an angular arm 65 ter minating in a clevis 67 straddling and connected to the rear end of fork driving rod 69. The arm 65 is -With drawn by .a spring 71. The driving rod is reciprocable in a bearing block 73 and is connected with .the shank 75 of the fork through a pin and slot connection 77. The shank 75 is provided with a stem 79 telescopically related to the rod 69 by riding in a bore therein, and aspring .81 in the bore serves to yieldingly force the fork against the mica when the rod .69 is moved to the left in Fig. 4. T o prevent rotation of the fork as it is driven forward by the arm 65, a guide rod 82 is fixed to the block 73 and a 'U-shaped member 83 straddles the rod 82 and is fixed to the rod 69.

There is one further cam 84 fixed on the shaft 37 which controls the alignment of the cathode on the mount assembly and which will be referred to later on in the specification.

So far only the top wafer applicator has been described. However, before the mica may be slipped over the tube mount electrodes, the cathode, the grid support rods, and the anode must be properly positioned. Means are provided at the described station to effect this result.

Arranged parallel to the face of the block 5 is a pair of horizontal superposed guide bars fixed in a block 87 whose hub is fixed to a vertical post 88 extending up from the base of the machine. Slidable on the bars is a frame 89 consisting of a cross head 91, and a vertical web section 93 connected to or forming part of the cross head. Pivotally mounted on the cross head and extending along the face of the vertical web is a pair of grid aligning jaws 97, 99. These jaws are spring urged toward closed position by springs 101, only the upper spring being illustrated, the lower one acting upwardly on the lower jaw 99. The jaws are normally kept apart against the action of the springs 101 by a cam 103 fixed on a pivot pin 105 pivoted on the vertical web 93. Fixed to the pivot pin is a crank arm 107 the free end of which has a roller 109 free to move along the interior of a horizontal channel bar 111 supported for vertical sliding movement on two vertical guide posts 113, 113, there being a stop collar 115 adjustably secured to one of the posts 113 to limit the downward movement of the channel bar. The. front portion of the channel bar is elongated to give a longer bearing on its post 113 to prevent binding of parts as the bar is moved up and down through the intermediary of a lift rod 119 at the opposite end of the bar or track.

After the jaws have been moved to the right from the position shown in Fig. 6 to be opposite the free electrode end of the mount assembly, the channel bar is raised to permit the springs 101 to closethe jaws. To limit the jaw closing movement, the web 93 is provided with a. lug in which are threaded adjustable stops 121 so that accurate positioning of the electrodes may be attained.

The means for moving the jaws to the right from the position shown in Fig. 6 and back again to that position comprises a connecting link 123 pivoted to the cross head and to the upper end of a lever 125, the lower end of which is pivoted at 127 to the machine frame. Intermediate the ends of the lever is pivoted a link 129 connected to one end of a bell crank 131 pivoted on the frame, the other end of the bell crank supporting a follower roller 133 operated by a cam 135 fixedly mounted on a shaft 137 driven from the main drive of the machine. The follower 135 is kept against the cam by a spring 139.

The lower end of the channel bar lifting rod 119 is pivoted to a bell crank 141 connected by a link 143 to a bell crank 145 whose follower roller 147 is held by gravity of the track and spring 149 against the cam 151. The cams are so shaped that the channel bar is not lifted unitl after the jaws are substantially in position over and under the free ends of the electrodes. Thus lifting of the channel bar or track rotates the arm 107 and cam 103, allowing the jaws to be urged to closed position by the springs 101.

The jaws 97, 99 carry tooth portions 153, serrated as will be later described to properly shift the free ends of the grids into place. Also carried by the jaws, see Fig. 6 are anode aligning portions 157. These have not been shown in Figures 7 to 12 in order to simplify the disclosure as to operation of parts. The aligning portions 157 are provided with vertical pins 159. As the jaws attain final closing position on the grid ends, the parts 157 and 159 support the three outer faces of the anode 14. The free edges of the anode are supported by the clamp block 161 carried on one end of bell crank lever 163 the outer end of which has a follower 165 kept against its operating cam 167 by a spring 169.

Also cooperating with the serrated jaws 153, 155 is a cathode positioning jaw 171. This jaw slides in a Way 173 supported at the end of a bar 175 fixed to the web 93, the rear of the bar having a spring 177 urging the rear end of a lever 179 upward and the front end of the lever downward. The lever is pivoted on a pedestal arising from the bar 175 and its forward end is pivoted to the slidable cathode positioning jaw 171. The ex pansion of the spring 177 is controlled by an up and down movable plate 181 on the under surface of which the roller end 183 of lever 179 moves as the cross head is moved to the right. The plate 181 is controlled on its movement, see Fig. 5, by means of cam 84, previously described, the cam acting against a follower roller 184 on a lever 185 connected by a link 187 to a lever 189 on the upper end of which is fixed the plate 181. A spring 191 serves to maintain the follower 184 against its cam 84. The cams 84 and the previously described cams 135, 151 and 167 are so related to one another that after the jaws 153, 155 have initially closed, the plate 181 is lifted off the roller 183 to allow the jaw 171 to move down over the cathode sleeve.

The jaw 153, see Fig. 7, is provided with a pair of long double wedge teeth 193 which, as the two jaws approach each other, preliminarily aligns grids 13 and 12 by engaging the free ends of their side rods just back of the ends thereof and shoving them laterally to their correct positions. The jaws are sufiiciently thin and the grid side rods extend sufficiently far enough beyond the grid lateral wires to permit the jaws to engage the side rods and yet leave enough room at the ends of the rods to slip the insulating wafer 24 at least to some extent over the side rods. Thus, while initially the unsupported ends of grids 13 and 12 and their side rods might have been in the position shown in Fig. 7, as the jaws approach each other these grids are brought into proper position, as shown in Fig. 8. The upper toothed element 153 is also provided with shorter single wedge teeth 195, to next align grid 11. For this purpose, the sides of the teeth 195 which engage grid side rods 12 are straight while the other sides are inclined for a distance. Just before final closing of the toothed elements 153, 155,

the forked cathode aligner 171 descends, pushing the cathode into place as seen in Figs. 9 and 10. Then the jaws all move to final closed position as shown in Figs. 11 and 12 to finally align the cathode and all of the grids. The upper toothed element has inclined ways 197 to assist in final alignment of parts. In the meantime, it will be remembered, the anode has been aligned by action of jaws 157, pins 159 and clamp jaw 161. The lower jaw 155, it will be noted has ways 199 cooperating with the ways 197, recesses 201 to accommodate the thicker side rods of grid 13 and a concave seat 203 for the cathode sleeve. The cathode aligner 171 it is to be noted has a forked element 205, with inclined inner faces converging upwardly to bring the free end of the cathode sleeve to its proper final position.

All of the cams are so shaped that when the aligning teeth are in the position shown in Fig. 11, the driving rod 69 starts the wafer over the free ends of the electrode element. After a partial advance of the wafer has thus been made, the positioning elements are withdrawn and the rod 69 continues its motion to drive the wafer to home position over the electrode ends.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as new is:

1. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, a mount holding block adapted to cooperate with a lower wafer for holding the one end of electrode elements including the one end of a cathode, movable positioning means engageable with the other end of the cathode to hold the said other end of the cathode in a fixed position, means for conveying perforated wafers toward the cathodes, and means operative in synchronism with the positioning means to remove a wafer from the conveying means and to apply it over the cathode and move the same a short distance therealong, and means to move the positioning means out or holding engagement with the cathode while the applying means further moves the wafer along the cathode to its final position on the cathode. 1

2. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for applying a top insulating wafer to a mount assembly, the bottom of which assembly is supported and has its parts aligned and said mount assembly comprising a number of electrodes including a cathode, means for aligning the tops of said electrodes, exclusive of said cathode, other means for aligning the top of said cathode, means to cause the said other means to become effective after the alignment of the other electrodes have been initiated and means for transferring a top alignment retaining and insulating wafer onto all of the electrodes after alignment thereof.

3. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes including a cathode held cantilever fashion in a wafer in a holding block, said means comprising a pair of elongated jaws provided with teeth to engage between side rods of the electrodes to wedge them into position, said jaws being normally separated and laterally removed from the electrodes, means for moving said pair of jaws longitudinally of the jaws so that they will be positioned over and under the electrodes, means for effecting closure of the jaws to engage and position the several electrodes except for the cathode, and a separate cathode positioning member, movable in the direction of closing movement of the jaws to engage and assist in positioning the free end of the cathode.

4. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes including a cathode held cantilever fashion in a wafer in a holding block, said means comprising a pair of elongated jaws provided with teeth to engage between side rods of the electrodes to wedge them into position, said jaws being normally separated and laterally removed from the electrodes, means for moving said pair of jaws longitudinally of the jaws so that they will be positioned over and under the electrodes, means for effecting closure of the jaws to engage and position the several electrodes except for the cathode, a separate cathode positioning member, movable in the direction of closing movement of the jaws to engage and assist in positioning the free end of the cathode, and means for applying an insulating wafer over the free ends of said electrodes while so positioned to maintain them in position after the several positioning devices have been removed.

5. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes supported at their other ends in cantilever fashion, said aligning and positioning means comprising a pair of jaws movable, longitudinally of the jaws, toward said ends with the jaws of the pair reaching a position above and below said ends, means for so moving the jaws and means for thereafter urging the jaws laterally toward each other, said last means being under control of a cam mounted for lateral movement with the jaws and said cam being interposed between the jaws, said cam having a cam arm, a follower on the end of said cam arm, a channel parallel with the direction of lateral movement of the jaws, said follower riding in said channel and means for raising the channel to rotate the arm and cam to permit the jaws to close on the electrode free ends.

6. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes supported at their other ends in cantilever fashion, said aligning and positioning means comprising a pair of jaws movable, longitudinally of the jaws, toward said ends with the jaws of the pair reaching a position above and below said ends, means for so moving the jaws, means for thereafter moving the jaws laterally toward each other to align and position the free electrode and except for the cathode, another jaw movable laterally with the pair or jaws and also movable athwart the pair of jaws to align and position the cathode, means for urging said jaw to operative position, a control plate having a guide surface parallel with the direction of lateral jaw movement and a follower movable along the guide surface, linkage between the follower and cathode aligning jaw to maintain the cathode aligning jaw out of operative position so long as the control plate is not moved and means for moving the plate away from the follower to permit the cathode aligning jaw to move to operative position.

7. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes supported at their other ends in cantilever fashion, said electrodes including a cathode, said means including a pair of jaws movable laterally of the cathode to a position over and below the cathode, means for moving the jaws toward each other including means for moving the lower jaw toward the cathode, means for moving the upper jaw down onto the cathode, and control means for the movement of the upper jaw comprising a plate having a running surface parallel with the direction of lateral movement of the upper jaw, a follower movable along the surface and connections between the follower and upper jaw, said plate and follower maintaining the upper jaw out of contact with the cathode so long as the plate is stationary, and means operative as the jaws reach positions above and below the cathode for moving the plate away from the follower to permit the upper jaw to move to engage and position the cathode between the upper and lower jaws.

8. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, an electrode centering mechanism including a rectilinearly movable jaw and a controlled part movable therewith, means for biasing the jaw toward the electrode, and control means overcoming the biasing means comprising a plate movable toward and from said controlled part, means for applying an insulating wafer over the electrode after centering thereof and cam means synchronized to operate the plate to release the controlled part and to operate the applying means.

9. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine means for centering an electrode including a jaw movable toward and from the electrode and a plate for controlling its movement, a shaft, cam means thereon for controlling the movement of the plate, a second cam means on said shaft, and an insulating wafer transfer device operated by said second cam means to move a wafer to a position on the centered electrode.

10. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes held cantilever fashion at their other end and means for applying an insulating wafer over said free ends comprising a conveyor with pockets for retaining said wafers, means for intermittently advancing said conveyor for presenting a Wafer opposite said free ends and means operative on cessation of movement of the conveyor to transfer a wafer from a pocket to a position over the free ends of the electrodes.

11. In an automatic mount manufacturing machine, means for aligning and positioning the free ends of electrodes held cantilever fashion at their other ends and means for applying an insulating wafer over said free ends comprising an endless conveyor provided with pockets for retaining said wafers, means for intermittently advancing said conveyor for presenting a pocket containing a wafer opposite said free ends and means within the reaches of the conveyor operative on cessation of movement of the conveyor to reciprocate through said specified pocket to engage the wafer therein and transfer the same onto the free ends of the electrodes.

' 7 said conveyor for presenting a pocket containing a wafer opposite said free ends, means holding the specified Wafer against said pocket and means operative on cessation of movement of said conveyor to reciprocate through said specified pocket to engage the wafer therein and transfer .3

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 

